


Sweet Things {Fairy Tail AU}

by Beffo4



Category: Fairy Tail
Genre: Angst, Fanfiction, Love, Multi, Revenge, Romance, alternative universe
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-18
Updated: 2017-03-14
Packaged: 2018-09-25 06:43:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 9,129
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9807869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Beffo4/pseuds/Beffo4
Summary: {Fairy Tail AU}Lucy Heartfillia and Levy Mcgarden move to New York in hopes of a new start and better life. They meet various new people and gain friends fast.Everything is looking good for Lucy until her past catches up with her and she is unable to run away again.Will Lucy be able to get herself out of a very dire situation? Or will she hurt everyone in the progress?As she finds herself being drawn into the dark life of Sting Eculiffe, Lucy has to make decisions she has never made before and one wrong move  could result in the death of a friend or worse, her new found lover.{Cover does not belong to me. Also uploaded to Wattpad}





	1. { Chapter 1 - Arival }

**Author's Note:**

> Long chapters. More uploaded on Wattpad.  
> Hope you enjoy!

A series of car horns sounded off just as our cap slowed down to a stop in the middle of the road. The traffic was chaotic, rush hour was just beginning and we didn't help the situation. We grabbed our bags from the trunk and I rushingly grabbed a few notes from my purse before throwing them at the cab driver, probably giving him way too much and not caring about getting any change back, I shouted my thanks before running across the street road, filled with slow moving cars with my suite case being dragged behind me.

I slowed to a stop and joined my friend on the walkway who was gaping at the massive building in front of us. We didn't take notice of the scowls we received from those who were trying to walk past without barging into us or tripping over our suite cases. We stood there for a further 30 seconds before a giant smile broke out onto my face and I nudged my friend, who was still gaping at the building with her mouth wide open. "Come on, Levy. We're starting to annoy everyone just standing here" - I gave an apologetic smile to a passing old couple that gave us a disapproving look before muttering something to each other - "And besides, our new apartment won't heat it's self up" I said before rubbing my hands together and blowing hot air onto them.

The air was already chilly here, compared to California at least. It was late September and had taken us almost a year to find the right building to move into, then we finally found one we were more than happy with and began the moving preparations at soon as the monthly rent dropped slightly, which ended with us here right now staring at the massive building that provably made us look like small dots from the top. I nudged Levy one more time and shouted "Come on!", it caused me to received a few weird glances that I ignored, and ran straight up the steps into the huge building.

After waiting 20 minutes and proving we were the ones who now rented the apartment the, kind and friendly, landlord Kinana gave us our keys and wished us well before leaving to attend other business.

I looked at Levy, who turned to me and smiled, we both hugged each other and began squealing in the hallway. I took a deep breath and released Levy from my death hug, "You ready for this? It's going to be amazing!" I started squealing again, unable to hide my excitement.

"Yea, Lucy. Lets do this!" Levy replied. She grabbed the keys, put them in the lock and took a deep breath before turning them. There was a soft click and Levy pulled the handle down , pushing the door open slowly.

I barged past Levy wanting to see the full view the living room, it was a wide open space with the kitchen and dinning area in the far corner of the room. "Oh wow, Lev, come look at this view it's amazing!" I said as I turned towards the wall that was mostly covered with glass, the wide windows showed us the streets and the far end of the city. "I'm so glad we got a high floor, the view is breathtaking".

Levy turned and looked around the living space, "This place is amazing, it's good for us that Fairy Hills furnishes their apartments, even if the rent is slightly higher because of it"

"Ha, who cares about that crap? Come on we gotta check out our rooms" I said grabbing my bags and suite cases before running to the far end of the apartment where our rooms where. The apartment only has 2 bedrooms which meant the rooms had some extra space. I ran into mine chucking my luggage on the floor and opening one of the closet doors to find a walk-in-wardrobe, my favourite thing about this apartment so far.

Levy ran into my room, her voice full of excitement, "You got a walk-in-wardrobe too?! This is great!" She started jumping up and down, like a small child on their birthday.  
I laughed, pushing her hard enough that she onto my bed, I laid down next to her and hit her in the face with a pillow, she giggled and flung it off the bed.

"I think we're gonna do just fine here. Do you wanna go out to eat after we're done unpacking?" I said, propping myself up on my elbows.

Levy sat up, "Yea, I think there's a small cafe around the corner it looked pretty cute, I'll call you when I'm done putting my stuff away." She finished speaking and gave me a smile before leaving my room and going into hers.

I took a deep breath, not moving from my bed, maybe this is the break we need. I got up, grabbed my bags and began organising my clothes and various other things. An hour or so pasted before Levy came back into my room, she had her jacket on and asked if I was ready to go, I shrugged on my jacket and we made our way out of the apartment. While levy was locking the door I turned in the hall way and noticed someone fumbling with their keys, muttering curse words under their breath, "Hey, you need help with that?" I asked walking over.

"Oh.. Er... Yea, thanks" he replied handing me the keys, "My name's Natsu, pleased to meet you, miss?..."

"Oh, my name's Lucy, me and my friend just moved in here." I said giving him a bright smile, "I thought Fairy Hills only allowed girl tenants?" I turned the key in the door before it clicked open.

Natsu took back the keys and said, "Nah that rule is from years ago, though only males that are approved by the owner are allowed to live here. Anyways thanks for the help Lucy, catch you later!" He gave me a big toothy smile before going inside his apartment, I didn't notice how warm is was standing by him and a shiver passed down my spine as the temperature dropped slightly.

I heard Levy finish locking our door and put the keys in her bag,"Lets go Lucy" Levy said, linking arms with me, "Who was that guy? Our new neighbour?".  
"Yea, he seemed really nice and friendly, I'll introduce you next time"  
"So there's a next time, aye?" She wiggled her eye brows at me, giving me a slight nudge in my side.

"Shut up, Levy!" I laughed, lightly punching her in the arm, she joined in on my laughing and we took the elevator down before exiting the building.  
We made it at a restaurant called Fairy Tail, the little cafe we passed earlier was closed and we had to find somewhere else to eat. The tables where posh, nicely cleaned and the place was well decorated, we chose the one farest from the door so we couldn't feel the chilled air from outside. "Number one thing to buy, warmer clothes" I said rubbing my hands together.

"I don't think it helps when you're wearing shorts and a small vest top, Lucy" Levy said gaving me a disapproving yet concerned look, "Lets just order something warm to eat, that'll heat you up".

I called over the waitress that I recognised from some modelling magazines. "Hello and good evening. My name is Mirajane Strauss, what can I get you today?" Her voice was sweet which matched her looks, she wore cute red and pink dress and had long white hair with the front fringe tied up, she seemed like she could become a good friend just after one conversation.

I gave her my order with a bunch of compliments about her modelling career, I asked why she was working here and the only reply I got was a warm smile and "I just love this place", I didn't pry any further as it would have probably came across rude, though I could tell her answer was genuine just by the look on her face.

Levy was just about to give her order when three guys barged though the door, loud enough the whole restaurant to turn and look, Mirajane sighed and gave us an apologetic look before saying "I'm really sorry about this".

Me and Levy just looked at each other with a confused look, then a familiar voice caused me to to look away from Levy who mouthed "what the hell?"

"Hey Mira, where's Gramps?" Natsu asked Mira, not noticing me or Levy. The other two guys, who were way bigger than Natsu stood behind him. They both had bored expressions on their faces.

"Natsu, as you can see I am trying to serve a table here, take your business somewhere else" There was a slight warning to her voice and caused the people who were staring to look away and Natsu to back off a little bit.

He angled his head so he could see past Mirajane and looked right at me, "Oh It's you! Is that your friend you mentioned earlier?" He asked pointing at Levy who had gone extremely quiet and still.

"My name's Levy, nice to meet you" she replied, her voice quiet and her eyes focused on the floor.

Natsu straightened up and moved to the side of Mirajane so he could see us properly. Mirajane sighed and began talking to one of the men that had stood behind Natsu. The man had bright blonde hair and a scar over his right eye, he wore a black coat that was lined with fur, a purple shirt underneath, red jeans and black leather shoes. He looked like a very intimidating person.

"So, what are you guys doing tonight?" Natsu asked looking at me.

He pulled my attention away from the blonde guy to him, "Um, just eating out and then heading back home" I replied, glancing at Levy who still had her eyes glued to the floor. I only now just realised Natsu had pink hair, it was spiked and all over the place. It looked kinda cute and suited his face well. He wore a full black suit with a bright red shirt on underneath, like he was here on very important business. Unsure of what else to say, I asked "What are you lot doing here?" Sending glances at the two other men.

"Nothing important just business with old Gramps in the back" He gestured with his thumb to a black door behind him that had an "Employees only" sign on.

I raised my eye brows "Gramps?"

"The owner of this place-"

Natsu was cut off by the other man who had stood behind him, the mans face was covered in piercings, even his eyebrows had been replaced by them. "Natsu, we're running out of time we need to go, now" his voice was rough, deep and loud which made Levy flinch, I gave her questioning look but she just shrugged and looked down again.

Natsu sighed, "alright lets go. You girls shouldn't stay out too late, the streets can be dangerous at night. See you later" and with that he turned around and went though the employees only door, with the two other men trailing behind.

Mirajane turned to us and apologised again, she took Levy's order, went and came back with two strawberry milkshakes for us both, we had one each. She said she'd put our meal on Natsu's tab because he "rudely interrupted" our evening meal, as Mira put it.  
While we waited for our food and Mira went to serve other customers, I looked at Levy and asked "What the hell happened just then? You went really quiet all of a sudden."

Levy looked at me in disbelief,"Lucy, did you see the guy with piercings all over his face? He scared the crap out of me!"

I giggled, "Well I thought the blonde guy was pretty intimidating"

"That was Laxus Dreyar, he's the grandson of the owner." Mira said walking over with our food.

"Sorry, we didn't mean to be rude" Levy said looking down.

"No need to apologise, I'll tell you their names and some information, but the rest you have to find out yourselves."- she winked at us and placed our food on the table -"The big guy with piercings is Gajeel Redfox, he seems pretty scary but he's not that bad when you get to know him, he brags a lot though, there was Natsu Dragneel, the pink head, I can't say much about him besides the fact that he's a nice guy and does anything to help his friends and then there's Laxus Dreyar who likes to keep to himself and doesn't get involved in anyone's business. Anyway, I hope you enjoy your meal and remember not to stay too late". We said our thanks and Mira returned to her work.  
We ate our food and stayed for an extra half hour before paying our bill and leaving the restaurant. It was dark and the air was much more cooler than earlier though the streets were a lot less crowded which meant walking home would be a lot more easier and quicker.

I turned to walk in the direction of our apartment and bumped into someone with a black hood covering their face, I muttered sorry and heard a threatening "Watch it" before I caught a glimpse of blonde and the unknown person walked into Fairy Tail, I tried to look at their face but was unable to see anything due to the hood they were wearing.

"Who was that?" Levy asked, sending a distasteful look in the direction to where they entered Fairy Tail.

"No idea, there's some weird people around here, lets go" I replied and began walking with Levy next to me.

It was late by the time we got home, we had taken a few wrong turns which ended with us spending 20 more minutes outside in the cold. As soon as we got in we both got ready for bed, tired from the events of today and moving, we greatly needed some sleep. We said goodnight to each other before we both retreated to bed, I fell asleep as soon as I closed my eyes.

I woke and looked my bedside clock, it flashed 02:48 AM. 'Great, I'm gonna be awake all night now'. I closed my eyes trying to ignore any random thoughts that popped into my head and tried to fall back asleep. I gave up 10 minutes later and decided to go get myself some warm milk. I made my way to the kitchen in the dark and filled half the mug with milk, I put it in the microwave and waited for the ding to tell me it was done.  
I was counting down the seconds on the microwave when I heard a thud from the hallway and shot up right, my heart beginning to beat faster. The microwave dinged causing me to jump but instead of getting the milk I walked towards the door, slowly and silently. I heard more thuds along with muffled whispers. They were coming closer. I was at the door now, hand ready to open it at any point. I heard another thud louder than the others, one more noise and i'll open the door I thought, attempting to sound brave. I tired reassuring myself saying I was just being paranoid then I heard a yell and another thud, I threw open the door causing it to make a loud bang as it made contact with the wall. The sound resulted in someone wincing and I looked in the direction of where it came from, my eyes met with Natsu's and I saw the blood that was on his face. If the blood was from him or someone else I didn't know. I ran over, my breath catching when I noticed all the bruises and small cuts that covered his face in various places .  
"Hey, you gonna help me with him or what?" The voice of a male, I didn't notice was there, asked.

I looked up and saw a man around the same size as Natsu, but with black hair and wore a black suite with a blue shirt that was also covered in blood. "Y-yea..." I stuttered, not sure how to help.

The man grabbed Natsu's keys and began unlocking the door. "Good, lift him up from under his arms, I'll grab his legs".

I did what I was told and we both grunted as we carried Natsu from the hall way to his sofa. I lowered his head down slowly onto a pillow and took a deep breath, turning towards the black haired guy, "What the hell-"

"Attend his wounds and then ask questions" he gestured to a door that I assumed lead to the bathroom.

"Excuse me? I'm not some maid for you to order around, go do it yourself" I copied his gesture and sat down on a chair beside the sofa, not breaking eye contact with the man. I didn't know how to dress wounds anyway so I wouldn't have been much help.

He sighed and ran his hand though his hair, "fine", he left and came back with a bunch of medical supplies and knelt in front of Natsu's face, who was led on his side.  
Natsu backed up into the sofa, saying "No way, give me the pain killers and I'll do it myself" his voice sounded hoarse, like he'd been shouting for hours or was punched in the throat multiple times, it was probably both judging by the bruises that covered his exposed collar bone.

The guy mumbled under his breath and gave Natsu the pain killers, Natsu took four he didn't bother with washing them down with water.

Natsu sat up, not waiting for the pills to kick in."Thanks, Gray" Natsu said, grabbing all the stuff Gray brought in and headed into the bathroom where he locked the door behind him.

I looked at Gray as he sat on the sofa, which was now most probably covered in blood, "I'm Lucy by the way" I said, trying to fill the awkward silence.

"Gray Fullbuster, sorry about being rude, it's been a stressful night" He rubbed his face as though it would keep him awake longer, he looked tired.

"I can tell... Do you mind telling me what happened?"

Gray nodded towards the bathroom door, "I'm sure he'll tell you".

I followed his gaze and a minute later Natsu walked out wearing completely different clothes, he had swapped his shirt and blazer for a plain, baggy white top and now wore pj shorts instead of his black slacks. I looked at his face, checking if there was any major cuts or bruises, his left eye was slightly black but not swollen, his nose was cut but not broken, he had a split lip and there was a large plaster on by his left temple, blood could already be seen though it. "Won't you need stitches for that?" I asked and pointed to the plaster.

"Nah it'll stop bleeding by tomorrow. The shower is yours, don't mess with the temperature, ice boy." Natsu said looking at Gray.  
Gray just replied with a muttered shut up before going into the bathroom and locking the door. Which left me and Natsu alone in the living room.  
Natsu turned on some lamps and closed the apartment door. He said mine was still open, I just shrugged knowing no one would walk in there with out me hearing them first. "Thanks for helping, Gray can be an idiot sometimes and just makes things worse" he said looking at me.

"No problem, you both scared the crap out of me, I'm surprised you didn't wake anyone else up" Natsu laughed at that, but my expression turned serious.

"What the hell happened to you?"

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Thank you for reading, any tips/corrections would help out a lot!


	2. { Chapter 2 - Unknown Caller }

My expression turned serious.

"What the hell happened to you?.

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Natsu looked away, avoiding eye contact "Nothing. It was just a stupid fight, you don't need to concern yourself over it".

"Natsu, don't lie to me, I saw the state you was in that wasn't just any kind of street fight. What was it?"

"It's safer for you if you don't get involved, it's bad enough that you're here right now." - he looked towards the window, as if he was expecting to see someone there watching us - "I think you should go. Don't tell anyone that you was here tonight, not even your friend it'll be bad for both of us if you do". He stood up from his seat, waiting for me to stand so he could walk me out.

I sighed and stood, "Fine, but just promise me you're okay and if it gets bad you'll call me or the police, I don't care what time of the day it is if you need help just contact someone and make sure to tell me you're well. Please Natsu?"

He gave me a reassuring smile that I couldn't help but smile at slightly, "I promise, you don't need to worry about me. In return you have to promise me the same, I'll be one call away when ever you need me".

I followed him to the door and went out into the hallway, I turned and smiled at him, "I promise, do me a favour and say goodnight to Gray for me. Bye Natsu"

Natsu replied with a nod and a smile, saying "Goodnight" before closing the door, leaving me alone in the hallway.

I went back into my apartment, grabbed a pen and paper and wrote my phone number on it with a little note saying " _Be safe ~ Lucy"_ , I slipped it in through the bottom of Natsu's front door, I went back to my apartment and locked the door, I headed back to bed. forgetting about the milk in the microwave.

My clock flashed 04:03 as I settled down into bed. I just closed my eyes when my phone buzzed on the side, I picked it up and read the text on screen _"Goodnight, Lucy"_ , I wrote a text back that said " _Goodnight, Natsu. Get some rest for those wounds"_ I turned my phone off and let it charge. Surprisingly I fell asleep rather quickly.

I woke up around noon the next day and wondered if Levy was still here. I got up, changed out of my pjs, put my hair in a high pony tail and got dressed into a pair of fresh clothes. I went out into the kitchen and noticed a note on the fridge, which read: _"Gone to work, will be back by tea time. ~ Levy"._  
_Great, now I'm gonna have to go out and eat I thought to myself,_ knowing fully well that if I attempted to cook for myself it would result in the apartment burning down. I grabbed my bag and filled it with with random things and chucked my phone in last, grabbing my set of keys I left the apartment, locked up and headed towards Fairy Tail.

Thankfully I remembered the way and found the restaurant with ease, it wasn't as busy as last night but it was pretty much full with only a few tables left empty. I sat at the bar area and waited to be served.

"Oh, hello again"

I looked up from my phone to see Mirajane smiling at me, I smiled back, "I didn't tell you my name last night did I? Sorry about that, well m-"

"Lucy Heartfilia , daughter of the rich and very famous business man Jude Heartfilia" - I flinched - " Mother unknown to the public, you ran away when you was 14 and has stayed with your best friend Levy Mcgarden since"

I looked at her in surprise, "H-how did you find all that out?" I wasn't sure how to feel.

Mira winked "Hehe, I have my ways. Don't worry I haven't and won't tell anyone else, your secret is safe with me"

I gave out a sigh or relief, "Thanks Mirajane, I owe you one"

"Ah, call me Mira, all my friends do. Well... You can pay me back by working here if you would like, It only has to be a few nights a week, nothing full time. You do need a job right? We'll pay you of course, we're low on workers recently".

Again I looked at her in surprise, "Are you sure? I've never been a waitress before, I'll probably be bad at it"

"You'll do fine, I'll teach you the basics and the rest you'll pick up on your own, you can start tomorrow 12pm till 9pm, that sound good to you?"

 

"Yea, thanks Mira. Honestly this makes things a whole lot easier for me" I gave her a warm smile.

"No problem, now how about that strawberry milk shake?" She asked walking away.  
"And some chicken nuggets please!" I said, just loud enough for her to hear me.  
Mira returned a few minutes later with the strawberry milkshake and chicken nuggets.

It was around 1pm when I stood up, ready to leave when Natsu entered the restaurant and walked over to me. "Hey Lucy, how've you been?"

I looked at his face, there was still small cuts and some bruises there but nothing extremely bad even the cut on his left temple has stopped bleeding and Natsu had taken the bandage off. "I'm good, you?"

He chuckled, "Well I've seen better days" he said gesturing to his face. "Sit with me a minute?" He sat down on the chair next to one I was sitting at.

I sat down, "What's up?" I asked, confused as to why he asked me to stay.

"I just wanted to apologise for last night, I know you were trying to help but I got involved in some random fight in the pub, it won't happen again I promise". He gave me another one of his reassuring smiles.

I grinned at him, "Fine I'll forgive and forget... As long as you buy my milkshakes for a whole month"

"Er, fine it's a deal" he said before nudging me hard enough I fell of my chair, he looked down at me checking I was okay before bursting out into a fit of laughter, even Mirajane began giggling.

I jumped up and felt my face heat up with embarrassment which just made things worse, it caused Natsu to point and laugh even harder. I looked around a few customers must saw as they were laughing too, my face turned even redder, I quickly sat down and hid my face with my hands.

"Hey, sorry Luce but it was pretty funny" Natsu said in between short laughs.

"You know what Natsu, lets make it two months, for two months you have to buy me a milkshake everyday!" I yelled into my hands, still trying to cover my face.

"Aww that's not fair, Luce" he nudged me again, lighter this time so I didn't fall of my chair.

"Yes it is and you can start today, order me a milkshake now, please" I removed my hands from my face and crossed my arms instead, trying to stand my ground.

"You win this round, Mira two milkshakes, one strawberry and one chocolate, please" Natsu said to Mira.

She came back 2 minutes later and handed us our shakes, "So Natsu, has Lucy told you yet? She's going to be our new waitress" Mira said looking at Natsu in the eyes, I could have sworn something dangerous flashed in Natsu's but I blinked and it was gone.

"Oh yea?" He grinned and looked at me, "I'll be sure to make your working days filled with hell" - he turned back to Mira, with a slight edge to his voice - "What nights will she be working, Mira?" I couldn't tell exactly what the change in tone of his voice meant but it didn't sit well with me.

_Maybe I'm just overthinking or something?_

Mira looked and me and winked before focusing her gaze, once again, on Natsu. "Only when she's needed and I'll make sure she gets home safe every night, you worry too much Natsu".

He sighed and turned his attention on me, Mira went off to serve a customer so It was just us, "I want you to text me every night after work, okay? I made my promise to you and you'll keep yours my telling me you made it home safe every night. I don't care if you think your being paranoid, if you think someone is following you for even the slightest second you ring me, got it?".

I looked at him, he was beginning to worry me, "Hey, Natsu don't worry, I'll be fine. I promise to call you if I think something's wrong and I'll text you when I get home safely".

"Thanks Luce, these streets can be bad at night. I just don't want you getting caught in one of the fights that people have out here" he sighed and looked at the time on his phone, "It's still early, wanna hang out here for a bit?"

"Sure" I said, knowing I had no plans for today.

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We talked and joked around for hours on end, it was coming around 6pm when Natsu was pulled away by Gray where they muttered to each other, they both sounded pissed off.

I was able to hear some random sentences, from Gray, such as; "It's not safe for... here", "You need to go and sort it out", "I've heard Ju... back" and "...ooth, are gaining...". The sentences left me more confused than I wanted and they kept replaying over and over in my head, I tried to make sense of them, to no avail.

Natsu walked back over with Gray, saying, "Sorry Luce, but I gotta go take care of some business, Gray here"- Natsu pointed his thumb in Gary's direction who just gave me a a nod of greeting -" Will walk you back home, I asked him to as he's heading in that direction anyways"

I looked between them both and sighed, I was really enjoying myself as well. "Alright, when do we leave?" I asked looking at Gray.

"In a minute" Natsu said, answering for Gray, "I'm just gonna go change in the back and then he'll walk you home". He turned towards and employees only door and made his way towards it, muttering something to Gray as he walked past him.

After five minutes, of some very awkward silence, Natsu returned wearing the same suite as last night with the same red shirt, no blood was on them so it was probably a spare set of clothes.

"Ready, guys? Natsu said, stopping in front of us to pay for todays milkshakes, Mirajane wished him a safe night and we all said goodbye to her as we made our way though the exit. The sun was beginning to set and the air was getting cooler, I took a deep breath of fresh air and smiled, it was only the second day of moving to New York, though we did stay in various hotels for 5 months before, and things were looking good already.

Natsu sent a text and 5 minutes later a red MP4-12C flew up the street and stopped before us. The driver, who had blue hair and a red tattoo that went above and under his right eye, got out and chucked Natsu the keys. "Thanks, Jellal. I assume you didn't get a scrape on her?"

The drivier, Jellal, ignored him and looked at me before returning his gaze to Natsu and grinned, Natsu in return gave Jellal a scowl. He continued to ignore Natsu and walked into Fairy Tail.

"Who was that?" I asked my eye lingering on where he entered the restaurant.

He walked over to the drivers side of the car, "Just someone who owed me a favour. Sadly I'm unable to give you guys a lift so you're stuck walking home. I'll see you to tomorrow Luce, Gray look after her" Natsu said loud enough for us to hear before opening the car door and climbing inside.

I waved as he drove down the street and stopped once he was out of view, I turned to Gray, who looked at me, and raised my eye brows.

Gray sighed, knowing I wanted a better answer than what Natsu gave me, "His name's Jellal Fernandes, him at Natsu are aalways owing each other favours so you'll probably be seeing him a lot more after today".

"Wait, Ferandes as in the Freandes that own most of the land in New York?!" My mouth dropped open, the Freandes were probably the most richest family in the state after my... I swallowed, returning from my thoughts and looked at Gray, "Anyways, I should head home Levy is probably worried by now".

"Lets go, I'll show you the short cuts so you can use them when walking here." Gray began walking in the direction of Fairy Hills and I followed closely behind.

We made small talk on the walk to my apartment and thanks to the shortcuts Gray showed me we reached the apartments in less than 20 minutes. We took to elevator to our floor and got out when the doors dinged open. Gray went straight to his apartment, I found out he and Natsu lived together, and I went to mine and Levy's after saying my goodbyes.

I opened the door and Levy hugged me before I was even two steps inside the apartment. "Whoa Levy, what was that for?" I asked, shocked.

She punched me lightly in the arm, "For nott texting me where you was! I was worried sick, I was close to calling the police!"

"Hey! Levy, calm down, I was at Fairy Tail the whole day with Natsu. Mira offered me a job there and I'm starting tomorrow!" I smiled, unable to hide my excitement as I grabbed Levy into a death hug.

"Uh...Lu...you're squishing...me" I loosened my grip on her and she pulled back from the hug, regaining her breath she said, "So, you gonna tell me about your day? You know, with Natsu" she wiggled her eyebrows and the end and I started giggling.

"Come on, lets order pizza and I'll tell you all about it" I said, closing the apartment door and pulling Levy to wards the sofa. We picked a romance movie to watch and ordered a pizza that arrived after 40 minutes. I continued to tell Levy about my day with Natsu, giving her all the details from our conversations and told her what small flirtatious moves I did. It was around 2 am when we decided to go to bed, we both got ready in our pjs and said goodnight to each other.

I messaged Natsu a good night text and said I hoped he was okay since I hadn't received any texts off him all night, 2 minutes later I got a reply that said _"Night Luce, sorry for not texting I'm fine, works just keeping me busy"_. I wondered what work he was doing to be up till this hour, pushing my thoughts aside I closed my eyes and fell asleep holding the phone to my chest.

I woke again, gasping for breath, throwing the blanket off me before running towards my bathroom, I grabbed the sides of the toilet and hurled up all the food I had eaten during the day. After 5 minutes of staying in the bathroom and calming myself down I went back into my room and opened the windows, I then climbed into my bed and looked at the clock, it flashed _05:07 AM._

I tired my best not to remember the dream I just had but the images kept flashing in my mind. I took a deep breath, _it was just a dream, it's all in the past now, it wasn't real_ , I muttered the same words to myself over and over. When I calmed down enough I was finally able to close my eyes without having a mini panic attack.I fell back asleep, mostly from exhaustion as I forced myself to stay awake and watch the door, to make sure he didn't walk in.

This time I didn't wake from a nightmare but to my alarm clock that wouldn't stop beeping no matter what buttons I pressed, out of frustration I ripped it out at the plug socket causing the whole thing to reset. It was 11pm and I had an hour to get ready and be at work, I sighed, today was going to be a stressful one.

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POV - ??

"Hello?, is this the leader of Sabertooth?"

**"It is, what can I help you with now, good sir?"**

"I need to know. Is she here, in New York?"

**"She is, but before we continue our contract we need to discuss further payment"**

"Fine, send me a sum and I'll mail back a cheque. I'm only paying you when the job is done and when I know you've listened to my every instruction"

**"I know, I know. So am I to tell the guys to back off for now? Just keep an eye on her but don't engage, right?"**

"Yes, do that exactly and keep me updated on her, who she talks to and what she does during the day. I'll call you when the time is right"

**"You got it old man, call and I'll send in my guys within 24 hours of contact"**

The phone was cut off. Shouts could be heard from outside the office, another attack? That made it two nights in a row. How strange...


	3. { Shadows }

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Excuse this chaoter and the next being out of season, I wrote these last year and I forgot to upload on time XD

  
A month passed with ease.   
It was nearing Halloween and the days were getting colder and colder.

My job at Fairy Tail was good, I got help from Mira when serving customers and I was able to see Natsu everyday.   
Levy was also doing good with her journalism job, most of her articles had already gone viral.

Today was the same as always, though Mira had taken the day off after a week of me insisting she should take a break. I was currently waiting for Natsu to walk into the restaurant, and perked up when I heard the door opening. Disappointment crossed my face as soon as I saw the person walking towards the counter wasn't Natsu. I sighed and forced a smile, "Hello, my name is Lucy. How can I help you today?"

He looked at me and smirked, putting his hands into the pockets of his black slacks. The suit he wore was the same as Natsu's and Gray's, he wore a white shirt on underneath, Maybe it's some kind of trend around here?. He had blonde spiky hair like Natsu's but shorter.

"I'm looking for someone, he should be arriving any minute now". He paused, looking me up and down, "Do you work here full time?" The blonde asked, sitting down.

I gave him a questioning look, "Erm no, only a few nights a week, can I get you anything while you're waiting?" I asked, in an attempt to get away. He gave off a bad vibe.

He opened his mouth to speak but Natsu walked in and we both looked towards him. Natsu looked over and his smile dropped, the blonde man stood up.  
Natsu was in front of the man in less than a second and he punched the blonde in the jaw, sending him flying to the ground.

I stepped back, unsure of what to do. In the past month I've never seen Natsu get this angry, not in front of me at least.

Sitting himself up a bit the blond spat blood from his mouth and wiped it away with his hand, "I'm here to see your master, Natsu. You know he doesn't like it when you start unnecessary trouble." He stood up and brushed himself down. Checking his watch, he said to Natsu, "The meeting is about to start, can't have any delays sorry, guess we'll have to settle this a different time" - He turned to me - "And we'll have to finish our... conversation later, see you next time Blondie", finishing his sentence he winked at me and turned on his heel, walking towards gramps's office.

I looked at Natsu, "Are you okay? You didn't hurt your knuckles did you?" I asked, my voice full of concern. "You shouldn't have acted so vioently.. Who even wa-", Natsu cut me off before I could finish my question.

"I'm fine Luce, don't worry about any of this. You should get back to work, customers need serving", he didn't look at me once and walked straight to the employees only door. His voice was filled with rage, which left me more confused than ever.

Who the hell was that guy?

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After apologising to the costumers who had witnessed the fight and cleaning up the mess, my day went back to normal. No one else unusual came by and 3 hours later they still hadn't left the office, occasionally I could hear some muffled shouts coming from there but nothing else.

It was nearing 6pm and I was growing tired of waiting for someone to come out of the room to tell me what was going on. The door bell went and I looked up to see Mirajane heading towards the bar, "You know a day off usually means the whole day off right, Mira?" I asked smiling slightly knowing how dedicated she was to this job.

"Yea I know but I was getting bored and I had nothing better to do so I thought, why not just go in?" She giggled at the last part, "I can also see that you're tired, you've worked almost everyday this week. You should go home and rest, I know how tiring this job can be".

"I'm fine, don't worry about it, I can survive another few hours, honestly".

"Lucy, go home, you've gone enough for today" Mira said while nudging me out from behind the bar.

"Alright, alright" I yawned, trying not to show how exhausted I really was. Walking to wards the door with my things already in hand, I said, "Call me back in if you need any help though".

"Will do!" Mira shouted to me, waving, as I left the restaurant.

I sighed, this job is pretty draining and confusing.., checking the time on my phone I began walking towards Fairy Hills. Having my eyes focused on my phone I didn't notice the person walking towards me, I bumped into their shoulder and looked back to apologise but they continued talking in the direction of the restaurant. The person was wearing black from head to toe, Honestly the people around here, what's with then and bumping into people?.

I continued on, after a while of walking though the alleys a shiver went up down my spine, "Guess it's colder than I thought It was going to be today" I said to myself, wrapping my jacket tightly around my body. I stopped walking due to what felt like a presence standing behind me, slowly I turned around and cursed at myself, _It's just a stray cat, stop being so on edge._

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Making it to the apartment with no other worries I found Levy sat on the sofa with her laptop, probably finishing up one of her articles. "Hey Lev, what you writing about?" I asked sitting down next to her, peering at the laptop screen.

  
"Hmm? Oh, just another article about the Fernandes. There's always a story about them." Levy replied, not taking her eye off the screen once.

"Well have fun with that, I'm gonna have a bath", I took her nod as an "okay" and left her to her work. I ran the bath and watched as the tub filled up with water, _Hmm I haven't seen Natsu nor heard off him.._ "I shouldn't let my mind wander, it'll just me easier to text him", as I said aloud as I got my phone out and began sending him a message,"Hey, just wondering if you was alright from earlier? I haven't heard off you all day x". After the message sent I put my phone to the side, undressed and climbed into the bath.

It had been 2 hours since I washed and messaged Natsu who hadn't replied yet, I grew more worried with every passing minute. "Levy, wanna head down to Fairy Tail? We haven't eaten yet and I still haven't heard off Natsu", I was basically begging her to go.

She sighed, "Alright fine, if it'll stop you from worrying and going on about it..".

We both got ready and left the apartment together. The restaurant was full of people and the line for a table was out the door, luckily we were able to get the next free table thanks to my job.

Mira came over and took our order, she returned with our food a little while after. I stopped her before she could serve someone else, "Mira, have you seen Natsu today? He was in Gramp's office last I saw him.", I tried to hide it but my voice was filled with worry.

"No but I seen two guys leave Gramp's office a few hours ago, I don't think either one was Natsu though, I can go check if you're really that worried" She gave me a reassuring smile and took off towards the office after I asked her to check.

Levy's spoke to me which caused me to stop staring at the door and look at her, "Lu, you know what he's like, I'm sure everything's fine"

"Yea, You're probably right.." I turned my attention to the door again. After 5 minutes it finally opened and Mira walked out, followed by Natsu and Gajeel, Mira went straight back to work and the two boys came over by us.

I gave Natsu a look that showed him I was not happy. "And what have you been doing all day?", the worry in my voice now replaced by anger, since I now knew he was okay.

He ran his fingers through his hair, clearly stressed. "Er.. It's a long story but I might tell you if you come for a walk with me?" He offered.

"Alright, fine"- I looked at Levy -"I can't just leave Levy alone though-"

Gajeels rough voice cut me off, "I'll stay with her, you two can get going".

I looked at Levy who was staring at me in shock, I mouthed I'm sorry before getting up and leaving with Natsu, quickly so I wouldn't feel guilty about leaving her.

Natsu laughed, clearly from seeing Levy's reaction, "She'll be fine, Gajeel's a nice guy, even though he doesn't look it".

We left Fairy Tail and walked towards the park, the air was cool and the sky was already dark, though the park was lit up from the street lamps and fairy lights that were placed on the trees. "It's beautiful, I've never see this place at night before", looking around I saw the small duck pond and dragged Natsu over to it, sitting on the bench I said "I love the pond, I always sit on this bench when I have nothing better to do in the day".

He sat down next to me, his body heat keeping me warm. He said "Yea, this place is pretty amazing".

"So are you going to tell me what happened earlier?"

Natsu sighed, "Do I have a choice?"

I punched him playfully, saying "No and don't give me some half arsed answer either"

He chuckled and rubbed his arm, acting like I actually hurt him. "Well, me and the blonde dude don't exactly get along. We've had some bad... deals in the past and neither of us want to pay up basically."

"And what were these bad deals exactly?"

He looked at me with what seemed like sorrow on his face, "There's only so much I can tell you luce, I don't mean to be selfish but it's just safer for you."

"Safer how? No one will know that you told me" Annoyance filled my voice.

"Look, it's bad enough that you talked to him earlier and you're talking to me now"- he looked away -"Things around here.. they're way more complicated than you think"

"I figured that out already but I need to know what's going on sometimes" I placed my hand on his, as an act of reassurance.

"I can't Luce, just forget about it, please? It won't happen again I promise" He smiled at me again, it was hard to say no to that smile.

"Alright, alright. But no more getting into, or starting any more fights, I mean it."- I shivered -"I'm freezing, wanna head back?".

"Sure. Here, take my jacket, I was getting too hot anyways" He said standing up and passing me his jacket.

"Too hot?" I muttered, shrugging it on, the inside was warm and soft. "Thanks for telling me, by the way". I gave him one of my smiles in return and we began walking back to Fairy Hills.

The rest of the night was peaceful. Levy came back awhile after I made it home and we told each other all about our night, "turns out Gajeel actually is a nice guy" Levy went on, "I don't understand why I was so scared of him, I can be pretty stupid sometimes".

"Hmm you sound pretty fond of him now, Levy", I said nudging her in the side and wriggling my eyebrows.

She started blushing, "Well.. He really is a great guy... He actually asked me out to dinner this weekend.."

I smirked and winked at her, "Well, well, Levy McGarden's got a date".

"Come on Luce,"- she shoved me -"I need something nice to wear, wanna go shopping in the week?"

"Yea, I get paid tomorrow and I'm not working so lets go in the morning"

"Alright, we should head to bed It's getting pretty late"

We said goodnight to each other and went into our separate rooms, I looked at the time 23:56, it's late but I'll text him anyways.  
I sent Natsu a goodnight text and climbed into bed, sleep quickly took over.

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The next day me and Levy went shopping as planned, Levy bought herself a skater dress that suited her well for her date, and we both got our Halloween costumes. It was coming up around 6pm and we began to head home, though we stopped in Fairy Tail on the way.

We decided to sit at the bar this time. Mira greeted us and I ordered my strawberry milkshake, I hadn't seen Natsu all day and I only got a goodnight text from last night so I asked Mira if she knew what he was doing.

"Well, one our old friends is back in town today, so they're currently hanging out in gramp's office. They should be leaving soon though." She replied, checking the time.

"Old friend?" I asked, curious as to who is was.

Mira smiled, saying "Hmm, I'll leave the introduction for you guys." and with that she walked off to serve a few costumers.

Levy finished her milkshake and said, "Is it just be or is everyone extremely weird around here?"

I laughed, agreeing. Me and Levy continued to talk, with Mira sometimes joining in on our conversations, for a whole hour unaware of the time passing. 

It wasn't till when most people had left that everyone came out of gramps' office. Gramp's himself, Cana (Who always drank with gramps in his office during the day), Natsu, Gray and a woman I didn't know walked over to the bar.

Natsu smiled at me when they came over by us, "Hey guys, sorry I haven't seen you today Luce, we've all been catching up in gramp's room" He gestured to those by him.

The woman, who had bright scarlet hair, walked in front of me and held out her hand, "So you must be this "Luce" I've been hearing so much about, Natsu talks about you a great deal".

I blushed at what she said and gave an awkward laugh, I shook her hand "I'm Lucy, nice to meet you!"

"I'm Erza Scarlet, It's nice to finally meet you too, Lucy", when she finished talking she let go of my hand and introduced herself to Levy.

Natsu sat down next to me while the others continued to talk among themselves, he explained "All of us working here at Fairy Tail have pretty much known each other since we were young, some of us like Erza and Laxus go away on big jobs so it's always awhile before we see them next". 

"Oh right," I looked at the others. They were all laughing at some joke Gramps had made, even Levy, "So is Erza going away again soon?"

"Nah, gramps asked her to stay over the holidays so she isn't away again like last year".

"Do you guys celebrate all the holidays together then?" I asked, a bit confused by his reply. 

"Yea, we hold a party here at Fairy Tail for each one. Didn't you know? I thought Mira would have told you by now, anyways, we're doing one for Halloween this Saturday. I was wondering... would you like to go with me? I mean you don't have to or anything.." His voice trailed off, cheeks turning red, running his fingers though his hair.

I giggled a bit, "Sure, I'd love to go with you"

He turned and looked at me, the biggest smile on his face, "Really? It's a date then!", with that he got up from his seat and began talking to everyone about the details of the party.

"A date?.." I whispered to myself, my own cheeks turning bright red.

The rest of the night was fun. We all chilled out at Fairy Tail, pass the closing hours, and told each other ridiculous stories and jokes, all while drinking too much alcohol for our own good.

It was nearing 3am when we decided it would be best to go home, all dreading the hangover we would inevitably have when we woke up. Erza had to crash on our sofa since she only just remembered she forgot to book a hotel for the night and her flat was a good few miles away, and none of us were sober enough to drive. 

 It was a fun night and I was a bit too sad that it had to end, I hadn't had this much fun in ages.

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Ty for reading ~

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading and following!!


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